Yeah, I was late again--but I did upload episode 143. Check your RSS feeds or the site. Speaking of which, if your iTunes, Zune or RSS aren't picking it up properly, please let us know. Something went wrong with 142's entry, and neither Al nor I could figure out what it was.

At some point during this past episode--or maybe it was 142? I'm not sure--I mentioned Rock Band's option for creating music, about which I heard while listening to the Giant Bombcast a few weeks ago. The news post on Kotaku now fleshes it out in more detail. Having used Activision's studio from Guitar Hero World Tour, I'm pleased to see that Harmonix's option is fully loaded.

However, I'm not sold that I'll use this tool much either. The problem--and it's not so much a problem as it is just the nature of the music-making beast--is how many pieces there are to the puzzle. While Guitar Hero's studio turned out some pretty heinous tunes, at least you could kind of just use your guitar controller to jam something out that was...hopefully...pleasing to the ear and then load it. Here, you're paying a hefty sum for tracking software, transfer software and an XNA Creator's Club membership. You have to come in with some musical knowledge or else the tracking software is going to appear to you like an Excel sheet on steroids; Harmonix is both fully aware of, and publicizing, this barrier to entry, which is a good thing since at least we know what to expect going in. It's just a downer that we still don't have a true "user-friendly" option for making your own music in a rhythm game (wouldn't it be great for you to be able to upload your own band's songs for at least your friends to play?). But then again, someone--either Ryan or Jeff, I can't remember--said all those weeks ago on the Bombcast that most people still wouldn't spend the necessary time and effort to track a song, because no matter how simple you make it, it's still a complex process.

Random: I haven't been playing games too much. I'm enjoying my opportunity working from my hometown for once this week by going out and catching up with friends who I never get to see on the weekdays, as well as working on a bunch of side projects. Most significantly though, I've been watching The Wire, which I purchased a few months ago and just now have finally gotten around to watching. It's a fantastic series. It's not for everyone, but it's simply made so well that I think everyone should give it a shot.

If you have a question or comment you'd like read on the next episode of the podcast, as always, hit us up at mailbag AT trigames DOT net or via this form right here. (Be sure to select the MAILBAG radio button before submitting.)